Inventions That Are Hardly Ever Used For Their Intended Purpose

Author image for Eric Lund
Eric Lund
Jul 22, 2021 3:00 PM EDT

One of the things that makes human beings unique is our ingenuity. For example, the famous cookie tin/sewing kit. A variety of medications, toys and uh, personal products are inventions that are now used for something other than their intended purpose. That doesn't make them any less useful. It means people are good at adapting. People are also pretty dumb, which is why we have so many brilliant ideas that were stupid upon review.

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  • 01
    Rectangle - galactic-frog - 19h 2 & 4 More Apparently paintball guns were invented for foresters/loggers/park rangers to mark trees (for cutting etc.) without having to approach each tree.
    via AskReddit
  • 02
    Rectangle - TouchedbyJebus · 16h 2 2 e 3 Pipe cleaners, Use them for all sorts of arts and crafts as kids. It wasn't till I owned a tobacco pipe and went to buy them that it actually clicked
    via AskReddit
  • 03
    Rectangle - benrsmith77 · 9h Digestive biscuits were originally created to prevent flatulence (hence the name). However they turned out to be perfect to dunk in tea which led to them being the most popular biscuit in Britain after some enterprising soul added a layer of chocolate.
    via AskReddit
  • 04
    Handwriting - bluebirdgm - 14h WD-40 was developed as a rust preventative (it's even in the initials: "WD" means "Water Displacement"). Nowadays people use it to lubricate mechanical parts.
    via AskReddit
  • 05
    Font - lovejetblack - 16h Botox was created to treat migraines 4.0k Reply Share pastanoodledoodle · 13h · edited 13h Botox was actually first used to treat strabismus (crossed eyes), for which it gained FDA approval in 1989. It gained FDA approval for cosmetic applications in 2002. It then gained FDA approval for migraines in 2010. It has tons of applications, including the treatment of dystonia (neck pain), underarm sweating, upper limb spasticity, and overactive bladder.
    via AskReddit
  • 06
    Rectangle - definitely_not_that_ 19h O 16 29 & 23 More video games are meant to be fun but people play league of legends
    via AskReddit
  • 07
    Head - Mio69uwu - 14h 2 e3 32 The egg plant emoji.
    via AskReddit
  • 08
    Font - dontGiveAnEfAnynore - 17h - edited 16h 2 Idk if it is only an Indian thing or every one does it, but almost every person who buys a treadmill only uses it to hang their laundry 16.7k J Reply Share poo_finger - 14h Had a Bowflex home gym and an elliptical machine. Can confirm.
    via AskReddit
  • 09
    Font - LeagueOfLucian - 13h 2 92 S Minoxidil was originally developed to treat high blood pressure and people reported unusual hair growth all around the body, since it promotes blood flow to the skin pores. They came up with a topical version and voila, millions of people smear that st.'t on their scalps and beards everyday and its the one of the only clinically proven ways to cure baldness.
    via AskReddit
  • 10
    Human body - bloblehead - 16h 2 2 S Q-tips. The only thing are used for is the one thing you are explicitly told not to use them for.
    via AskReddit
  • 11
    Dress - galactic-frog - 17h Remember when MTV was a music television?
    via AskReddit
  • 12
    Font - BigBobby2016 - 18h 2 Super glue was meant to be a temporary method of stitching a wound. It was used that way during the Vietnam War. Tell people today to super clue their cuts shut, however, and most will think you're crazy
    via AskReddit
  • 13
    Font - VegetableWishbone - 17h Viagra. It's a heart medicine originally.
    via AskReddit
  • 14
    Smile - Dydey 19h 3@3 3 3 2 Hitachi market a massaging wand that works absolutely great on muscle knots. It works by using powerful vibrations and it's mostly used for something that Hitachi refuse to acknowledge entirely.
    via AskReddit
  • 15
    Gesture - Cafen8ed · 11h The pocket watch pocket on your jeans
    via AskReddit
  • 16
    Smile - TheShadowCat - 12h e S That tin for holding cookies is now filled with sewing gear. No matter where you go in the world, see a nice tin of cookies at someone's house, nope, it's sewing stuff.
    via AskReddit
  • 17
    Font - Salty-Tortoise 14h Toothpicks have a million uses that aren't picking teeth.
    via AskReddit
  • 18
    Rectangle - cliffy80 - 14h To a large extent, NyQuil. Most medicines are abused, but I've known many people including my brother at one time that drank it to fall asleep. I'm a firm believer that's why Vicks introduced ZzzQuil.
    via AskReddit
  • 19
    Font - spacelordmthrfkr · 12h S Iirc Play-Doh was invented to clean wallpaper
    via AskReddit
  • 20
    Smile - Ezequiel-052 - 13h History Channel... as far as I am concerned the secret relationships between aliens and the illuminati do not qualify as "history"
    via AskReddit
  • 21
    Human body - Newtracks1 · 12h The warming drawer on the bottom of all our ovens, which is used as pan storage for exactly %100 of oven owners.
    via AskReddit
  • 22
    Font - Single_Performance25 - 10h - edited 10h Slinky, the toy. It was originally designed during ww2 to help sensitive instruments remain steady on ships... to counter the effects of pitch, rolI, and yaw. The guy knocked some off his desk accidentally, saw the way it moved from the table to the chair, to the floor, and a new purpose was born. On a side note... during the Vietnam War, when the Slinkys were metal, radio operators would carry them through the deep jungles. If they couldn't get a g
    via AskReddit
  • 23
    Human body - reelin5 · 12h Not sure if this would count or not, but I thought of Pedialyte. Originally supposed to be for dehydrated babies, but adults use it now to fight hangovers.
    via AskReddit

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